Chapter 234. Childhood Friend – Kyung
It wasn’t a mistake.
Using his {Tracking Skills}, Lev confirmed that the man he saw beyond the recently closed castle gate was indeed Sir Bryan. However, he had no idea why Bryan was there.
It was a passing acquaintance, not particularly special, which made it all the more perplexing.
Had something changed? Lev pondered his past encounters but couldn’t pinpoint anything significant.
He had met Sir Bryan during the 11th cycle, in the engagement scenario. It was when he first avoided {War} by successfully hunting down the Nocturnal Tiger. Having gained his father’s (Noel Dexter) approval, he embarked on a sort of warrior training journey.
…That is, to put it politely. It was a cycle filled with nothing but scars, where he had driven a stake through his beloved fiancée’s heart.
Following his father’s advice, he crossed the border to spar with the knights of the Holy Kingdom of Jerome, and the first place he visited was ‘Vidrin Castle.’
It was home to the elderly Baron Berger Agatha and his wife, Baroness Agnes Agatha, a couple without children but with great marital harmony. Sir Bryan was a knight in service to the Agatha barony.
But why was he here now? The only notable change at Vidrin Castle could be…
‘Because I caught Nightmare?’
That was the only guess he had. While the Agathas didn’t particularly care about the monster, it seemed the most likely factor that could have influenced the repeated cycles.
‘But what does the disappearance of the monster have to do with Sir Bryan being here? Why would a knight of the Agatha Barony have business with Count Simon?’
– “Don’t worry, dear. My brother… no, Count Simon will surely help us. The Simon Barony is my natal family… and they have many knights… I wrote everything in the letter.”
A thought suddenly crossed his mind.
Baroness Agnes Agatha had introduced the Simon Barony as her natal family. However, when Lev had arrived at the count’s estate, there was no trace of her presence.
‘That’s right. There was something odd. It was strange that such a prestigious count’s family had married off their daughter to a small barony like Agatha.’
There must be something to it. Lev, recalling the doubts he hadn’t fully explored in the past, looked up. The residence of Count Simon loomed ahead.
It was a simple yet grand mansion.
In accordance with the frugal customs of the Holy Kingdom of Jerome, the mansion was unadorned. It might have benefited from protrusions to break the monotony of the walls and columns, but such features were absent.
Yet this design also emphasized the building’s weight and solidity.
Passing beneath the flying buttresses that seemed to support the structure, Lev finally reached the front gate. He shook his head at the chief steward who came out to greet him and said,
“I’m afraid I must trouble you to bring the count here. We can’t bring this creature inside the mansion, can we?”
– Whinny!
“Understood. I will inform him.”
The steward, glancing up at the enormous nightmare (Doheukpoma), nodded in understanding and turned away. While he went to fetch the count, Lev patted his disciples on their shoulders.
“Relax a bit.”
“Yes, sir.”
Lev’s words were to ease the tension in his disciples, who were pretending to be knights.
Aside from Ban Bizan, who was usually calm and showed little change in expression, the other young men seemed tense. After calming them down, Lev approached the carriage where Cardinal Mihaer was and spoke.
“You may come out now.”
“…What brings the Sword Master of the Kingdom of Orun here?”
Hmph. Such tricks wouldn’t work on him.
Lev smiled and answered in a thick northern accent.
“We are traveling with my disciples. By the way, have you now decided to remove this mark?”
“……”
“That’s unfortunate. Then let’s make another agreement. Cardinal, you are free to act as you wish. However, if you don’t want to antagonize me, forget everything that has happened. Just tell Count Umberto Simon that you accidentally marked us and can’t remove it. Ah, here he comes.”
A middle-aged man with a square jaw, Count Umberto Simon, appeared. He walked over with a surprised expression, watching the nightmare horse nibbling on the ivy clinging to the walls. His expression grew more complex when he saw Cardinal Mihaer stepping out of the carriage.
Seeing a swordmaster marked with a holy symbol and a cardinal together was bewildering.
“Nice to meet you. I am Lev Bizan.”
“Pleasure to meet you. I am Umberto Simon. Cardinal, you are here as well. Can you explain what is happening?”
Lev folded his arms nonchalantly.
He was waiting to see how the cardinal would react, subtly pressuring him. Cardinal Mihaer seemed to have decided not to antagonize Lev.
“There was some friction along the way. I mistakenly marked these gentlemen with the holy symbol, thinking they were ruffians. So, I brought them here. The mark will last about six months… Please help them avoid any inconvenience during this time.”
Count Simon nodded.
“I see. That won’t be a problem. I will vouch for them. Since this is a fortunate encounter, would you care to join me for a cup of tea inside?”
“That sounds fine to me.”
Lev emphasized “me,” and the cardinal, noticing this, excused himself due to fatigue and disappeared with the crusaders, following the steward.
“You all wait here. Keep an eye on the nightmare horse so it doesn’t cause trouble.”
“Yes, sir! Have a good time! And please bring back some snacks if you can.”
Leaving behind Ruben’s cheerful reply, Count Simon and Lev entered the drawing room. The count started the conversation, commenting, “Your disciples seem very dependable.”
Lev threw out a meaningful statement.
“The cardinal has made another unnecessary request, hasn’t he?”
“…What do you mean by that…”
I don’t even know what I mean by that. Lev was probing, trying to infer the relationship between the cardinal and Count Simon.
“I’m referring to the construction.”
At this clear indication, Count Umberto Simon’s expression hardened. However, he initially feigned ignorance.
“I don’t understand what you’re talking about. What construction do you mean?”
“Ha ha. You have occupied the land southeast of the Bommer Volcano for quite some time, haven’t you?”
Just then, a maid entered, placing teacups before Lev and the count, pouring tea made from refreshing Punita leaves. After a moment of silence, the count spoke once the maid had left.
“Are you from the royal family?”
“I’ll just say I received a request. This holy mark is quite fascinating. I don’t even know what crime I committed. Hahaha. There’s no need for you to vouch for us.”
“…It seems there is some misunderstanding. That land is not illegally occupied by us. It belongs to my sister, and the count’s house is simply managing it on her behalf. We also have the king’s approval.”
What? It wasn’t illegal?
Lev felt that his assumption was somewhat incorrect. However, suspecting the count’s displayed tension, he decided to reveal everything he knew.
“Ah, you mean Baroness Agnes Agata, right? I know. She resides in the distant Vidorin Castle, without any children…”
Count Simon’s crimson eyes wavered. On reflection, this was also quite strange. Although she is his sister, the count and the baroness looked very different. From the square jaw to the eye color.
Lev continued his speech, keenly observing the count. However, he sensed the count’s tension easing, indicating he might have said something incorrectly.
“It seems you don’t keep in frequent contact with your sister. She must feel quite lonely, having married off far from home and missing her family.”
“Yes. It’s difficult to stay in touch frequently as I age. I also miss my sister very much. I should write her a letter today. By the way, how did you manage to tame the nightmare horse? It troubled us for a long time, and I appreciate it.”
Is this not it?
The count’s house is illegally occupying the estate of the fallen Agnac family. You must have some collusion with the cardinal. I am the great swordmaster sent by the royal family to investigate, so confess while I’m being nice.
Lev’s plan to extract the count’s true intentions hit a snag. He must have missed some connection that the count was worried about.
Subsequently, the conversation lacked substance. Even when Lev brought up the “construction” the cardinal had requested, the count brushed it off lightly.
“The land is barren. The cardinal suggested turning it into farmland. It’s a challenging task, but if successful, it would benefit the local residents’ livelihood.”
Unfortunately, as the teacups emptied, Lev lost the pretext to continue the conversation.
“You said you don’t need a guarantee? I’ll provide you with a room. Stay as long as you like. And while you probably don’t need money, it never hurts to have more, does it? Consider this a small token of appreciation for taming the nightmare horse.”
As Count Simon rose and clapped his hands to call a servant, the servant soon brought a large wooden box filled with heavy gold ingots.
Lev accepted the bribe without much comment.
“Thank you.”
Though he didn’t need the money, he thought accepting it might reduce the count’s suspicions.
This is troublesome.
Lying on the bed in the room assigned to him, Lev clicked his tongue.
Maybe I shouldn’t have said I didn’t need a guarantee.
I should have just gotten the guarantee and gone to Rutetia.
I sensed something was off, and I didn’t like the idea of the count, who once tricked Leo Dexter, and the cardinal, who had repeatedly killed Euta’s grandmother, plotting together, so I overthought it. But now, I feel like I’ve lost more than I’ve gained.
‘This is frustrating.’
I have a feeling, but I don’t know the specific details of what’s going on.
If it really comes to it, I might have to knock the count out.
“What agreement did you make with the Cardinal? Speak up now!”
Although Lev could threaten him, he wasn’t in a position to act so recklessly. He had disciples who followed him, and next year, he was to lead a rebellion in the Kingdom of Orun and ascend to the throne.
After collecting his thoughts while lying down with his arm as a pillow, Lev got up and called for Ban. He instructed her to stay vigilant while he went out briefly, then quietly slipped out of the count’s mansion.
{Tracking Skill}
There’s no ability more useful for finding people.
Lev left Count Simon’s territory and, fortunately, the guard he had seen earlier was still on duty. He followed the direction indicated by his {Tracking Skill}, cutting through rundown streets, and within an hour, he found his target.
In an unsanitary-looking inn, sitting in the dark dining area on the first floor, was Sir Bryan. He was eating, and it quickly became apparent to Lev that he didn’t deserve the honorific “Sir.”
He was using a fork and knife clumsily, grasping them with his fists.
A master of swordsmanship who once expertly wielded a forte now couldn’t even hold cutlery properly.
“Who are y… gah!”
Bryan, who had just lifted his head, recognized the Swordmaster he had seen earlier.
With an unkempt beard and bits of food stuck to it, clumsy use of cutlery, and a hunched back from hard labor, Lev’s heart ached at the sight of the man who had once barely matched him as a fellow knight.
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